The present application is related to applicant""s copending application entitled xe2x80x9cBody Part Imaging Systemxe2x80x9d Ser. No. 09,562,842, filed May 1, 2000, by the same inventor.
The present application is related to applicant""s copending application entitled xe2x80x9cBody Part Imaging Methodxe2x80x9d Ser. No. 09/562,843 May 1, 2000, by the same inventor.
The invention relates to the field of footwear imaging and sizing. More particularly, the present invention relates to imaging of human feet and footwear sizing database management.
The present application here incorporates by this reference applicant""s copending application entitled xe2x80x9cBody Part Imaging Systemxe2x80x9d Ser. No. 09,562,842, filed May 1, 2000, by the same inventor, and applicant""s copending application entitled xe2x80x9cBody Part Imaging Methodxe2x80x9d Ser. No. 09/562,843 May 1, 2000, by the same inventor. These prior applications disclose and teach systems and methods for imaging of feet for providing foot measured dimensions well suited for use in the present invention.
Footwear retailers and manufacturers seek to provide means of fitting footwear to feet of human beings. The fit should be proper and comfortable. Typically, a customer would purchase footwear from a retailer only after trying on the footwear in the store, after selection and tying on several pairs of footwear, such as shoes or boots, of a particular style. Beside retail store sales, catalogs have also been used to indirectly procure footwear. The advent of wide spread Internet communications has enabled purchasers to conveniently and indirectly procure desired products without having to travel to a specific in-store retailer. As with catalog purchasers, they""re is no way for the customer to try on the pair of footwear to verify proper and comfortable fitting prior to ordering the footwear through an Internet web site or from a catalog. Consequently and often, indirectly purchased footwear through catalogs and the Internet do not fit properly and comfortably when received and the footwear items are often returned scuffed or worn. Even when a customer orders the correct designated size of footwear through indirect channels of trade, variants in footwear sizing leads to poor fitting and uncomfortable footwear that are returned or scraped. The footwear industry return rate for improper fitting or uncomfortable footwear may exceed two billion dollars per year in the United States alone. The advent of a precision fitting method could save the footwear industry billions in lost sales and hundreds of millions of dollars per year in write-offs for scrapped product that cannot be reclaimed.
Footwear manufactures often provide purchasers with a wide selection of styles of footwear from which to choose. The footwear is typically manufactured on footwear lasts, referred to herein as footlasts that define the inside cavity of the footwear. The materials that comprise footwear are wrapped, nailed or glued around the footlast that acts as a fixture or mold to construct the footwear. Hence, the footwear footlasts defines the inside cavity of footwear. To provide a complete selection of various sizes from small to large sizes, in various lengths and widths, the manufactures uses a corresponding set of various sized footlasts to manufacture a style of footwear in ranges of sizes. The cavity of the footwear is a three dimensional cavity defined by the footwear footlasts. Because different footwear manufacturers use different footlasts for their respective styles and sizes, often a footlast of a designated size will be substantially different from the same designated size of a corresponding footlast of a different style. Even though the manufacturer may designate a size, that size, defined by the footlast cavity is not precise disadvantageously leading to nonconforming standard sized shoes incorrectly at times referenced to standard designated sizes. Additionally, the size and shape of human feet vary greatly from one human to another. Often, feet of the same standard size are substantially different in shape leading often to poorly fitting footwear of the same but presumed correct designated size. With differently shaped and sized footlasts used to make footwear for purchasers having differently shaped feet, often footwear purchased of the correct designated size will not properly comfortably fit. The variation in sizes between feet and footlasts of the same designated sizes leads to large return rates when the customer can try on footwear and even greater returns when the customer cannot try on the footwear. Furthermore, because the sets of footlasts for respective styles vary greatly between styles as well, the selected style, selected designated size, and individual shaped feet do not provide a customer with certainty of procuring properly fitting footwear without trying on the shoes in the retail store to attempt verify a proper fit prior to purchase.
To complicate the imprecision of footwear selection, different styles have different shapes that lead to different fits for the same designated size for the same pair of feet. Some areas of the foot and the corresponding locations within the cavity of the footwear are more critical than other locations depending on the style of footwear selected. For example, the width fit in stiff footwear, such as dress shoes, is more critical than the width fit in soft-shoes, such as comfort walking shoes. With a large variation between footlasts, styles, and feet, often the selection of the footwear is imprecise leading to many returns. Consequently, customers often reframe from purchasing footwear for themselves as well as for others resulting is missed sale opportunities for the customers and manufactures. The majority of footwear returns from both direct in-store and indirect non-store are first for fit then for comfort. Proper length and width sizing of the inside of footwear to the length and width of feet does not assure that the best size of that style with a comfortable fit is selected. The sizes for different styles and from different manufacturers may require size variations of up to two sizes using the same American footwear scale for size designation. The ordering of a correct designated size does not guaranty that the footwear will properly and conformably fit.
It is now possible to image a human foot in traditional X-Y-Z three dimensions with accurate precision. A foot can be accurately imaged using optical scanning systems and methods. To image the foot, that customer may be provided an identification number for referencing the foot image to the respective human. However, because there is no current practical way to precisely match the shape of a foot to a corresponding style and footlast, the three-dimension foot image and identification is of little value when selecting footwear. These and other disadvantages are solve or reduced using the present invention.
An object of the invention is to provide a system and method for precise selection of proper and comfortable fitting footwear.
Another object of the invention is to provide a system and method for matching foot images to footlasts for precise selection of proper and comfortable fitting footwear.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a system and method for matching foot images to footlasts using fitting tolerances for precise selection of proper and comfortable fitting footwear.
Still another object of the invention is a system and method for matching foot images to respective footlasts within respective fitting tolerances and weighted comfort zones for precise selection of proper and comfortable fitting footwear.
Still a further object of the invention is a system and method for matching precision foot images to respective precision footlasts of respective footwear styles within respective fitting tolerances and weighted comfort zones for precise selection of proper and comfortable fitting footwear.
The invention is directed to a comprehensive precision system and method for matching precision foot images to respective precision footlasts of respective footwear styles for precise selection of proper and comfortable fitting footwear. A proper fit goes to correct sizing while a comfortable fits goes to the feel of the footwear when worn. The system is enhanced using respective fitting tolerances and weighted comfort zones for improved precision in footwear selection. Three-dimensional (3D) images of feet are matched to three-dimensional images of footlasts. Computer database storage and processing enables the matching of foot images with correctly sized footlasts that defines the cavity of the footwear. Because both the feet and shoe cavities are precisely imaged in 3D, the customer can select footwear with a high degree of confidence that the selected style and size of the footwear will properly and comfortably fit the feet when received.
The human feet are imaged and crossed referenced to a customer identification number (ID). The foot images are represented in a precision 3D-foot data structure. The footlasts that define the inside cavity are cross-referenced to particular styles and manufacturers. The footlast are also represented in a precision 3D-foot data structure. In the preferred form, the footlast and foot image 3D data structure are the same for ease of matching foot images to the best proper and comfortable fitting footwear. After imaging the feet of a human being and imaging the footlast, a customer can at any time provide the customer ID and the desired style of a manufacturer. The system and method cross-references the customer ID to the 3D-foot image representation. Then the system and method selects among the sets of 3D footlast representations to automatically match the foot image to the best footlast from a set of footlasts for the selected style and present the human with the best fit size.
In the preferred form, a fitting database is used to provide enhanced selection of the best footlast for the selected style and foot image. The fitting database has a plurality of fittings parameters each of which defines in whole or in part an imaginary 3D shell disposed in computer relation between the exterior of the foot defined by the foot images and the interior of the footwear cavity defined by the footlast. The footlast fittings have a similar data structure as the foot images where each has a plurality of X-Y-Z coordinate positions. Groups of contiguous interior cavity coordinates may be grouped into comfort zones for ease of calculation. Each footlast coordinate position in each zone uses the same set of fitting data between respective positions with reference to the feet. The fitting data is effectively combined with the footlasts to provide the tolerance shell about the footlast image. When the foot image coordinate positions fall within the respective fitting tolerances of the respective footlast, then the fit is deemed proper. When the footlast fitting tolerances are such that a plurality of footlast are deemed proper and comfortable, the zones can be weighed to select the best fitting footlasts from the plurality of acceptable footlast. The best fitting footlast corresponds to a particular size of footwear for the selected style. The customer may then procure the footwear with a high degree of confidence that the selected recommended footlast size will fit proper and comfortable, thereby minimizing footwear returns. These and other advantages will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment.